Link the Pieces
by Snowwolfe45
Summary: To link the pieces, you need the full picture. He has that. To link the pieces,you need the pieces. He has them. To link the pieces, you need patience. He has that. When a mind is broken, the pieces are scattered, but never destroyed. He needs to link them back together to have her again. He must find a way. He can't live without her, and she cant remember him. Under Indef. Hiatus
1. Broken Memories

**Ok, so this was a challenge story from one of my friends. They said, looking at my other works, that I was too action based, and my romance was lacking, saying it was bland and had no real life to it, that it was just along for the ride in the story. So naturally, they challenged me to write a romance story that was strictly based around the relationship between two characters. Naturally, that is not my forte, so this might not be the bestest story ever... BUT I will try. This is something I had to mull over and see what direction I could take it, but I think if I stay diligent, it could come out decently. I hope you enjoy!**

** I does not own SAO. I wishes I dids though... I coulds be rich!**

Kazuto dropped the knife he had taken from Sugou. He turned around to head back towards the hospital to see his Asuna. _His Asuna. _The thought of talking to her in flesh and blood for the first time sent chills down his spine. He knew the snow had nothing to do with it. He started to run for the door when he was stopped by the sickening sound of Sugou's mad laughter. Kazuto turned to look at the twisted man.

"What are you laughing at, Sugou?" the boy spat. The broken man laughed maniacally for a few moments longer before gaining the breath to speak, his back still turned to Kazuto.

"Do you really think you've won, boy?" he said, laughing again.

"What do you mean, you bastard?" the boy known as Kirito's voice dripped with venom for the man laying on the asphalt of the hospital parking lot. His laughing stopped abruptly. He rolled over to stare wildly at Kazuto.

"Do you really think I would just let you have the girl? Well think again! If I can't have her, then neither can you!" he started to laugh again.

"What do you mean?" Kazuto yelled at Sugou. He continued to laugh for another minute.

"Heh... go see for yourself, boy," he started to chuckle, and turned back over. Kazuto began to worry immensely. He sprinted towards the doors, not able to contain his worry, as a lone tear rolled down his face.

_If that bastard touched one strand of hair on her, then I will kill him personally._ Kazuto thought, hatred filling his thoughts, but his concern for Asuna soon dissipated the rage swelling inside him. After sprinting through the hallways much to the chagrin of the hospital employees, he finally arrived at Asuna's room. The plaque next to it read _Yuuki Asuna._ He moved his hand to hove over the handle of the door, but couldn't bring himself to open the door. He feared the worst, running all possible and terrible scenarios through his mind. After several minutes of just standing there, fearing the worst, he knew nothing would develop if he didn't turn the handle to her room.

He slowly lowered his hand onto the cold metal of the door handle. He began to open it at a painstakingly slow pace. When it clicked open, he meticulously swung it open. When it stood open for the world to see into, he stared into the small, dark hospital room with fear filled eyes. He slowly stepped over the threshold into the room and closed the door. If Asuna was awake, she didn't hear the door opening and closing.

Kazuto crept up past the screen used to separate the beds of the occupants of the room. Luckily, Asuna was the only occupant of this room. When he got past the curtain, he breathed an audible sigh of relief. Asuna was sitting up in her bed, hands folded in her lap. She was staring out of the large window in the side of her room, watching the snow fall.

"Asuna?" Kazzuto called softly. She didn't answer. He got closer and called out a little louder. She still did not respond. He walked up to her bed and placed a hand on her small shoulder. She turned to look at him, a quizzical look adorning her features. Kazuto absolutely beamed, seeing nothing wrong with his beloved. He was about to envelope her in a hug when she asked a question the shook his foundation, all the way to his core, making him question if this was a reality, or a sick, twisted dream that he was forced to endure.

"W-what?" he asked frantically. Asuna repeated her question.

"Who... are you?" She asked, a look of disbelief on her face.

"W-what do you mean, Asuna?" he said, looking as if he had been shot in the gut.

"How do you know my name, and why am I in this hospital?" she demanded, looking around trying to find the nurses button. "Where is my father and my brother?" her voice started to become frantic. "Who are you?" she demanded again. "I don't know you, so what are you doing here?" Kazuto crashed to the ground, tears streaming down his face. Sugou's voice echoed through his mind, his laughter following the sickening statement he made to the boy.

_If I cant have her, then neither can you! _He now realized what he meant by that. He took away everything Asuna knew of him, which was SAO. He took away her memories of the past two years, of all the time they grew together and bonded as friends, then developed into something more, then when the grew to love each other. He took away what was most precious to him. He took away Asuna.

Asuna began to fervently press the button to call for a nurse. A few moments later, two nurses burst through the, expecting to find a patient in critical condition from the alarming distress call. As soon as they came into the room and into Asuna's sight, she began to demand of them the reason she was in a hospital bed and why this stranger was allowed in her room. Kazuto heard none of it though. He was wrapped up in his own grief and sorrow. And rage.

IIIIIIIII

Kazuto sat outside of Asuna's room at four A.M., listening to her father and brother explain to her why she was in the hospital. He sat with his head in his hands, tears streaming down his arms to run into the confines of his black jacket.

After a couple hours, her brother came out of the room to retrieve Kazuto. He was an exceptionally handsome man, standing at 6'2", with the facial features that would rival the models of a Western underwear line magazine, with the physical build to boot.

"You can com in now, Mr. Kirigaya," Kazuto looked up to the brother of his lover, to see the faint line of dried tears of his own on his face. Kazuto stood up slowly and followed the man inside the now well lit room. He walked up to the point where Asuna was still concealed by the curtain. Her brother turned to look at him with questioning eyes. Kazuto cast his gaze downward, and took the last few steps into Asuna's line of vision.

"What is he doing here again?" she asked her brother. "I told you I don't know him!" she screamed.

"Well, Asuna, sweetie, he knows you. You met him during the last two years. He is the one who helped you get out," her father explained.

"Oh really? Well, what do you want, a pat on the head?" she asked, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Kazuto suppressed a sob that threatened to break free. "Oh, are you sensitive? Did I hurt your feelings?" she cooed out, sarcasm blanketed over her voice like a foot of snow.

"Asuna, enough!" her father ordered. Kazuto couldn't meet her contemptuous gaze. _She doesn't remember anything! How am I going to convince her that we are in love with each other? How am I going to make her remember what we had? _

"Well, baby boy? What do you have to say?" she demanded of him. For a few more moments, he couldn't speak, but he finally found as basis to build upon.

"W-when we were... inside the game... I was always on my own, not really wanting to trust other to do what I could do myself. I was putting myself in bad situations, but I didn't care. Things happened several years ago, and I found myself not caring if I lived or died once I was trapped in the game. That is... until I met a certain girl," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"And I care... why?" she asked.

"Because that girl was you," he said, now looking at Asuna. She was startled by the answer. "I fell in love with you, and it gave me a reason to live and to beat the game; so I could meet you in real life. You started to fall in love with me to, and we had something special during that time. Then, when we did beat the game, a sick bastard kept you as a prisoner in another game. So, I went and kicked his ass to free you, but he made sure to make me pay for it," Kazuto explained, tears running freely fown his face. Asuna looked extremely interested now.

"W-what did he do?" she tentatively asked.

"He took away your memories of me."

**Well? Was it a good start, or awful? Feel free to tell me with that tiiiiiiiny button at the bottom of the page, cause I seriously need some good direction with this. I'm not the greatest at writing romance... It hard... Snow out...**


	2. Adjusting

**I don't care for this chapter, its a bridge between events and is kinda rough, i just have to ask you to suffer through it. So sorry...**

Asuna sat in complete silence for several minutes, staring at her hands that where placed in her lap. She opened her mouth to speak several times, but nothing would come out, and she closed it right away.

Kazuto just stood there, his eyes trained on the white tile floor, his mind racing, trying to think of a quick solution to the problem, but none came to mind. Asuna's father and brother watched the two teens as they tried to come to terms with the situation. Her father, Yuuki Shuho, saw the love and level of caring Kazuto had for his daughter every time he came to visit her. He knew this boy was telling the truth to his daughter, but he also knew he could do nothing to resolve the situation. It was up to this boy to make his daughter remember.

"I... I remember why I played SAO..." Asuna finally mumbled out. "Shuhei," she said motioning to her brother, "was gone on a business trip and couldn't play on opening day of the game... So I decided to try it out... the last thing I remember before waking up was initiating the link to the game..." she told the three men.

"Well... that's a start, at least, sweetie," Shuho said.

"Yeah..." Kazuto was still transfixed on the floor. Shuho turned his attention to the boy.

"Kazuto?" The Kirigaya was snapped out of his trance.

"Yes sir?" he said, now looking at the older man. Asuna's father sighed.

"As much as it pains me to say... I can do nothing to help my daughter remember the last two years... I wasn't there, and I can't even begin to imagine the pain she and you endured under that mad man... So I ask you... I beg of you to help her remember!" Shuho begged of Kazuto. His eyes widened, astounded at the pleading tone of Asuna's father. He slowly nodded.

"I will do everything in my power to help her. For her sake... and mine," he told the man.

"... Thank you," Shuho said, voice trembling. He turned his gaze back to his daughter. "Asuna, honey?" he called for his daughter. She raised her caramel eyes to meet his matching eyes.

"Yes, dad?" she asked.

"I beg of you to listen to Kazuto. If he tells you something about the last two years, you must believe and trust him. I know I do. He is the only one that can help you remember," he told his daughter. She looked back at the black haired boy, who was now staring intently at her. She nodded.

"Okay... I'll try, daddy..." she said, turning back to her father.

"Oh, thank you, Asuna! You have no idea how much it hurt's not being able to help!" he exclaimed, standing up and wrapping her with his arms. After a moment he released her, but kept a hold of her shoulders. "Now, you look exhausted. It's time for you to rest. Besides, your mother will be back from America in the morning," he told his daughter.

"Really?" she said, her face lighting up like a beacon.

"Yes, now rest, Asuna," he commanded of her, lowering her head onto her pillow. She nodded to him once she was fully laid down. "Good night, my sweet daughter," he whispered into her ear. "It's good to have you back," he said while kissing her on the forehead. He stood up and ushered the two others out of the room, flicking the light switch to plunge the room back into darkness. When the door closed fully, Asuna turned to stare back out of the window.

_What the Hell has happened in the last two years? _She thought, right before letting a peaceful, dreamless sleep consume her.

IIIIIIIIII

Kazuto stood outside of the hospital room as Shuho closed it silently. When the door clicked, signifying it was fully closed, Asuna's father turned to Kazuto, placing a hand on his shoulder. Kazuto, who was previously focused on the tile floor, raised his eyes to meet the older man's own pair.

"Like I said earlier, Kazuto, you are the only one capable of helping her to remember. For the next few days, let her rest and readjust to normal life. God knows it's been far to long since life has been that way for you and her," Shuho said to the young Kirigaya. He nodded at this.

"Don't worry, Mr. Yuuki, I'll do my best," he told the older man.

"Thank you, Kazuto. Now, it is time for myself to get some rest. Today has been tiring for everyone. Goodnight, and I hope to see you later today, Kazuto," he said, flashing a quick smile at Kazuto.

"The same to you, sir," Kazuto responded. At that, Shuho made his way past the boy to the elevators down the hall. Shuhei followed his father. Kazuto stood there for several more minutes after they left, just starring at the door to Asuna's room. Finally, knowing he couldn't do anything about it right this moment, he turned and headed down the hallway to the elevator's as well.  
IIIIIIIIII

Kazuto walked through the doors of his home at 6:30 A.M. By this time Suguha was already awake and preparing for s day of school. As soon as he closed the door, he was assaulted by his cousin with rapid fire questions of 'where have you been?' and 'what have you been up too?' and 'why were you gone all night?'. She was asking questions faster than the fatigued boy could process them. After a minute of this, Kazuto had to silence her.

"Suguha enough!" he shouted. She quieted very quickly, looking slightly hurt. Kazuto sighed. "I'll tell you everything when you get home from school... Right now, I need to sleep," he told his younger cousin. He brushed past her and up the stairs to his room. When he entered the medium sized room, he peeled off his snow-soaked jacket and threw it haphazardly across the room in anger. He was so angry at the whole situation, he was grasping his hair and yelling out a string of curses that echoed throughout the house.

He eventually ran out of the will to continue, and threw himself onto his bed. He was trying to sleep when he heard a soft knock on the door. "Kazuto?" Suguha said, just barely above a whisper. "Are you alright?" she asked, immensely worried about her cousin. For a minute, he said nothing, then he repeated his earlier statement.

"I said go to school, Suguha. I'll tell you later. I'm tired and need to sleep," he ordered his cousin.

"...Alright. I'll... see you tonight, then," she said concern laced clearly in her voice. Kazuto responded with a soft 'yeah' before she made her way back downstairs. Kazuto laid on his bed for another hour before sleep took him, his mind a blur of the past twenty-four hours.

IIIIIIIIII

Kazuto awoke to the sound of Suguha announcing her return from school. He slowly sat up rubbing the sleep from his dark eyes. His head gave a sharp pang of pain, and he gripped his head with both hands, feeling a major headache on it's way. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, checking the time. 4:13 P.M. He looked at the bottom of the screen, seeing five missed calls. With a flick of his finger and a short pass code later, he saw that all five were from Shuho Yuuki. Kazuto began to panic.

He quickly changed clothes and threw some cold water on his face to wake up. He checked the bandage on his arm that a nurse had wrapped around it after being cut by Sugou. It needed changing, but he would do it later. He quickly made his way downstairs, sprinting past Suguha who yelped in surprise.

"Kazuto, where are you going?" she called after him.

"The hospital, I'll talk to you later!" he called back, jumping on his bike. He began to pedal at a lightning quick speed, straight to the hospital.

IIIIIIIIII

When Kazuto walked through the doors of the hospital, it was 5:45 P.M. He was directed to the front desk to receive a visitors pass from the desk attendant. As soon as he had one in hand, he rushed to the elevator. He noticed a large number of police officers were patrolling the hallways of the medical facility. He hit the button that called the elevator to the main floor. After a minute, a bell dinged, and the sleek metal doors slid open, revealing an elevator with only one man inside; another police officer.

Kazuto stepped inside and hit the button for Asuna's floor, then stepped away from the panel and stood across from the police officer. Thirty seconds later, the elevator dinged again, and the doors slid open silently. Kazuto exited the elevator and walked quickly to Asuna's room. He halted suddenly when he noticed two police officers on either side of the door. He resumed after his surprise had settled.

When he reached the door to Asuna's room, the police officer on the right of the door stopped him, demanding his visitor's pass. He read the name aloud.

"Kazuto... Kirigaya..." he turned to look at the other officer. He then turned his vision back to Kazuto. "You wouldn't happen to be involved with the incident in the parking lot of this hospital with a Sugou Nobuyuki, would you?" he asked the boy.

"Yeah. He attacked me in the parking lot last night," he told the police officer. The officer glanced at his companion again.

"Sir, I need to get a full report of the incident last night. Don't worry, your not in trouble, we watched the security video and we know you were the one who was attacked," the officer told an anxious looking Kazuto. His demeanor turned to slightly miffed at that.

"Can it wait?" he asked the officer.

"I'm afraid it can't. It shouldn't take long though," he told the boy. Kazuto gave a frustrated sigh at this.

"...Alright, whatever," he told the policeman.

"Good," he responded, pulling out a digital notepad. Kazuto began to tell the tale of his and Sugou's most recent encounter.

IIIIIIIIII

After finishing retelling the incident between himself and Sugou, Kazuto was finally allowed into Asuna's room. He was greeted by her father, Shuho, who adorned a dark gray business suit with a white undershirt and a black tie.

"Hello, Kazuto," he said when he walked through the door, bowing to him, but only slightly.

"Hello, Mr. Yuuki," Kazuto responded, and bowed just as shallow as the older man. "Sorry I wasn't here earlier. I was asleep most of the day, and was just stopped outside by the police officers to tell them about what happened last night with Sugou," he told Shuho, flashing a thumb behind him at the door. "Why are they there?" he asked the older man.

"Well... Sugou posted bail and was let go until his court date. I asked the chief of police to send some officers to protect Asuna from that sick man. I still can't believe he would do something like that to my daughter!" he exclaimed. Kazuto's demeanor darkened.

"Shuho, who is that?" a woman called from behind the curtain concealing Asuna.

"Oh, it's Mr. Kirigaya, the boy I was telling you about," he told the woman.

"Oh? Well, Mr. Kirigaya, come show me the boy who saved my daughter!" Kazuto obliged the woman he now knew as Asuna's mother. He came into her vision from past the curtain, which garnered a gasp from her. "Oh, my, you are handsome, young man!" She said, raising up from her seat next to the youngest Yuuki. She wore a high priced pair of designer blue jeans and a red cashmere sweater. Her hair matched Asuna's exactly. She made her way over to Kazuto, enveloping him in a hug.

"Oh, Mr. Kirigaya, thank you so, so much for what you have done for this family!" she said.

"Uh... please, just call me Kazuto, Mrs. Yuuki," he said to the older woman, who released him.

"Well, alright, Kazuto. Please, call me Mariko. If you haven't figured it out already, I'm Asuna's mother," Mariko informed Kazuto. He flashed a meek smile.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Mariko," he said to the woman.

"Oh, what manners! I swear, this boy Asuna, you couldn't find better if you tried!" she turned to her daughter, a smile beaming on her aged face. Asuna frowned and turned away from the two.

"Oh, Asuna, don't be that way," Mariko begged of her daughter.

"Mother, I told you, I don't remember him. I don't remember anything, so how am I just supposed to trust someone I don't know? Can you tell me that?" Asuna was now looking at her mother again, caramel eyes clashing with anger. Her mother did not back down, regardless of how much contempt Asuna directed towards her. Asuna was the first to back down, casting her gaze back out of the window. Mariko turned back to Kazuto.

"I'm so sorry, Kazuto! My dear Asuna can be really bull headed at times!" she said, trying to apologize for the actions of her daughter.

"It's alright, Mrs. Mariko, I found that out about her in SAO. If she set her mind to something, it had better be ready to listen to her!" he said, chuckling a little. Asuna glanced back at the boy. Before anything else could be said, there was a knock on the door.

"Ah, that must be the specialist!" Shuho exclaimed. He walked to the door and opened it, allowing a woman, possibly around thirty years of age, to walk in. She had red hair that ran all the way down her back and ended around mid thigh, and a pale complexion. She was in a white lab coat covering her black shirt and black slacks. She adorned black high heels and a pair of white reading glasses.

"Hello, Mr. Yuuki," she greeted Shuho, bowing slightly to him. He repeated the action

"My name is Mei Kagutsuchi. I am a psychiatric specialist who prioritizes in the regaining of memories."

**Was it as bad as i thought it was? I don't like putting a lot of dialogue in one chapter, but there are going to be a lot of chapters like this for the story to work :( Anywho... Snow out.**


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